Will Arnold be back for 'Terminator 4'?

Published 7:00 pm, Thursday, July 10, 2003

Chock full of humor and great lines, artistically photographed "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" is fast-paced and entertaining, a worthy chapter in this gripping science fiction saga.

Since her untimely death in 1997, Sarah's scruffy-looking son John (Nick Stahl) has striven to maintain a low profile. In the guise of a friendless migrant worker, he wanders the byways of California on his motorcycle. Avoiding a doe on a country road leads to an injury-producing accident. In dire need of medication, John burglarizes a rural animal hospital owned by veterinarian Kate Brewster (Claire Danes). Kate captures John and — as fate would have it — they discover they were once childhood sweethearts, a romance that abruptly ended in 1991 with the coming of "T-2." Ominously, Kate's father (David Andrews), a high-ranking USAF general, heads SKYNET, a secret government project that — if activated — can command all of the computers in the world.

The fun begins when the latest-model T-X cyborg materializes in a Beverly Hills dress shop window — without a stitch of clothing. Whereas early robots were built like brutish weight-lifters, the newest model (Kristianna Loken) is willowy and graceful, with curves that suggest that cognizant Machines know the female figure is inherently superior. Fetchingly attired, the blonde Terminatrix appropriates a silver sports car at a stop sign on Rodeo Drive. When she sees a Victoria's Secret billboard displaying 2003-style cleavage, she performs her own augmentation surgery with her index finger.

To assist Kate and John, Schwarzenegger's compassionate but obsolete T-101 arrives from the future. Butt naked, he strides into a Hollywood strip club on ladies night. Enthusiastic applause confirms his splendid faux masculinity. Arriving at the clinic in the nick of time, the chase begins. Along the way, he shocks Kate when he reveals that she is destined to marry John. Meanwhile, T-X confronts Kate's fiancée and assumes his identity.

Action highlights follow when the Terminatrix steals a mammoth construction crane, a machine on wheels capable of mowing down buildings. When Kate, John and T-101 visit Sarah's burial vault, they escape in a hearse that eventually becomes a convertible. They arrive at SKYNET headquarters minutes after General Brewster activates the system. The villainous Machines immediately take over, and T-101 states that a nuclear holocaust will begin at 6:18 p.m. The last and telling scene is at an impervious underground facility.

The craftsmanship employed, particularly in putting together robot innards that are easily recognizable caricatures of the actors, is truly amazing. I couldn't help cringing when the muscular T-101 wrestles with the delicate, feminine Terminatrix. While Loken struts her stuff, looking like a feral cat-lady on the prowl, this is definitely Schwarzenegger's movie, one that begs for another chapter in a tale not completely told. Will this 55-year-old star heed his fans, or will the current governor of California be terminated in favor of this action hero?

Movie: "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (R for violence, language and nudity)